The present invention relates generally to mattresses suitable for use in hospital environments. More particularly, the present invention concerns a mattress for use in care of critical patients which provides both a means for permitting radiographic studies to be performed with minimal patient movement and an improved support for the patient's torso.
When a hospital patient has undergone surgery affecting the upper torso, including surgery on the back and spinal column itself, radiographic examination during the recovery period is often necessary. In some situations, it is necessary to move portable X-ray equipment to the critical patient's bedside because the patient's condition prevents him from being transferred to the hospital's X-ray department. However, even when such portable X-ray equipment is used, it is necessary to move and disturb the patient in order to place the unexposed film in the proper position for radiographic exposure.
Repeated movements, and jostling of the patient during portable radiography can be not only uncomfortable for the patient but in many situations are a potential source of risk to continued recovery by the patient. For example, where a patient has recently emerged from serious surgery, for example open heart surgery, there are often a plethora of drainage tubes, intravenous connections, and intraarterial connections. Disruption of these various tubes and connections can damage them, require their replacement, and can even injure the patient if they are inadvertently dislodged.
In addition, there are times when the apparatus surrounding the patient requires the assisting personnel to move the patient while those personnel are in awkward positions. Attempting to lift or move a patient who may not be able to assist can lead to physical strains on those personnel that may result in claims under workman's compensation and the like. Touching the patient to lift or move him also creates problems where the patient is in isolation to control the spread of an infectious disease. Under these circumstances, the need to lift a patient exposes the attending personnel to the infection and increases the risk that the infection can be spread to other areas of the institution. And, where the radiographic material directly contacts the patient, the radiographic material itself provides a mechanism for spreading the disease or infection.
In the past, it has frequently been necessary to also provide critical patients with supplemental back supports while those patients convalesce. Typical situations where such supplemental supports are required are where the patient has undergone surgery affecting the upper torso including surgery on the back and spinal column itself. There are numerous other circumstances where additional support is required such as where there is an injury to the back itself.
To provide this additional support, prior approaches have been to insert a wide, flat board beneath the mattress and on top of the bed frame.
There are also circumstances where the patient cannot physically lie on a hard, flat apparatus such as a radiographic cassette. Similarly, there are times when the sensitivity of the patient's skin is such that he cannot tolerate the temperature difference between his body and the radiographic cassette. Accordingly, prior techniques of radiography have been inadequate to overcome all of these problems.
Naturally, efforts have been made in the past to overcome some of the foregoing types of problems. For example, specially designed beds are known which permit unexposed film to be positioned for the X-ray examination of a patient without moving the patient. See for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,103,170 issued to Spradlin, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,724,004 issued to Behrens. However, where the proposed solution to the problem is a structural modification of a hospital bed, the cost to the institution becomes significant since hospital beds are quite expensive. Some devices have also been proposed which aid fluroscopic examinations of patients. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,818,516 issued to Hopper et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,631,242 issued to Williams, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,503,082 issued to Kerwit. Devices for use with fluroscopy do not, however, utilize a film to produce a radiograph.
Efforts have also been made to improve the method for handling the unexposed film during preparation for radiographic examination of patients. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,233 issued to Craig et al and U.S. Pat. No. 3,967,126 issued to Otto, Jr. However, these devices are not suited for use with hospital beds and mattresses.
Certainly, there is a clear need to minimize to the extent possible the capital expenses that hospitals and other institutions which care for the ill must incur. Moreover, there is a need to reduce the risk of inadvertent injury to the patient by the health care staff and the related liability of the health care staff. Furthermore, there is a need to reduce the potential of injury to hospital personnel from movement of the patient and the potential for claims against workmen's compensation.
Accordingly, it will be seen that the need continues to exist for inexpensive devices which can be used by hospital staffs to improve the patient's comfort while still permitting the necessary radiographic examinations to be performed.